The Parents of Dhaos
by The-Griffin
Summary: While studying magical activity, Klarth comes upon a disturbing realization, and seeks out Cless, Mint, and Chester to solve the mystery of the death of one of their own, and to save the earth again. Rated PG-13 for character death, and a bit of blood.
1. Prologue

Klarth F. Lester gazed from his window and sighed. It had been… what? Ten? Fifteen? It had been seventeen years since the defeat of Neo Dhaos, although, technically, it wouldn't happen for a hundred and thirty-three years. But, for a former traveler through the River of Time, it had been seventeen years. It was the same for Arche Klaine, the half-elf who had accompanied him on his journeys. Klarth broke his gaze away from the picture-perfect scene outside, the people walking around, going about their errands, and gazed at the Eternal Sword that Cless Alvein had given to him to return to his time, and to guard with his life. He gazed down towards the tome of magical research and recent activity at the year 4210, and studied the burst of activity that had occurred around Ymir Forest. He had thought originally that Arche had gotten into a scuffle, but not even Arche would purposely generate that much power just to defeat a random bunch of monsters. They had both privately agreed that the most powerful spell Arche would cast, unless in an extreme emergency, would be Indignation, and this energy greatly exceeded Indignation's power, even when the Yggdrasill was at its prime. No, this was more of the power of Meteor Storm, but Arche, as irresponsible as she is, wouldn't cast that spell on just to kill a living oak! Was what ran through Klarth's head. Then, he noticed a small power. He had discounted it merely as a simple casting of Fireball, but, now that he inspected it closer, it resembled more of a summon. It couldn't have been… Could it? The activity generated by a summon is always very low, and to an inexperienced eye a summoning of Gremlin Rea could easily be mistaken for a simple Lightning spell. Still, each summon had its distinctive signature, and this one didn't resemble any one he'd…  
  
Klarth froze in his tracks.  
He had been running through his memory, recalling the energy signature of hundreds upon thousands of magical spirits and their summon energy, recalling the signature of monsters long-extinct in the real world, and his mind found upon one that meant only one thing.  
Arche was dead, if not the entire elf population.  
Klarth knew better than to think that this could be handled by him alone. He had been training in the use of the Eternal Sword, yes, but this was too great for him to handle. Not even Gremlin Rea could stand up to this power, it was so great. Klarth quested for the Eternal Sword, finally locating it among a pile of useless notebooks and porn magazines, the figurative and literal diamond in the rough. Klarth picked it up, feeling the power resonate into his body. Klarth held it up high, and yelled out.  
"Eternal Sword! Please take me to Cless Alvein and Mint Adnade!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
A flash of light erupted from Klarth's study.  
"Oh, great. He's gone and done one of his kooky experiments with combining elementals again, and pissed them off to the extent where they would attack him," thought Miranda. Holding the baby close to her, that Klarth had recently sired, she walked timidly forward, hoping that the elementals would not attack her in her frustration. She creaked the door open slowly. She stood in pure and utter shock.  
  
Klarth had disappeared, and the Eternal Sword was missing. She walked around, searching through the books, hoping against hope that Klarth was just playing a joke on her, and that he would pop out of a large pile of books and scare her out of her wits. Unnoticed in her search, a note was written:  
  
"Dear Miranda,  
  
I cannot write for long, for I fear that it may attack me, in its search for the Eternal Sword. All I can say is that you should leave immediately, for our son is special, not in the way that a parent thinks that his or her son is special, but in a way that could change our world dramatically. I have gone to retrieve Cless, Mint, and Chester, for they alone can help us. Hopefully, we will be back soon.  
  
-Klarth"  
  
(A/N: Good prologue, huh? Well, read and review, and flames are accepted, mainly because I need nest liner! =P) 


	2. The Ravage of Euclid

Tales of Phantasia: The Parents of Dhaos  
Written by The_Griffin  
Prologue  
  
Klarth F. Lester gazed from his window and sighed. It had been… what? Ten? Fifteen? It had been seventeen years since the defeat of Neo Dhaos, although, technically, it wouldn't happen for a hundred and thirty-three years. But, for a former traveler through the River of Time, it had been seventeen years. It was the same for Arche Klaine, the half-elf who had accompanied him on his journeys. Klarth broke his gaze away from the picture-perfect scene outside, the people walking around, going about their errands, and gazed at the Eternal Sword that Cless Alvein had given to him to return to his time, and to guard with his life. He gazed down towards the tome of magical research and recent activity at the year 4210, and studied the burst of activity that had occurred around Ymir Forest. He had thought originally that Arche had gotten into a scuffle, but not even Arche would purposely generate that much power just to defeat a random bunch of monsters. They had both privately agreed that the most powerful spell Arche would cast, unless in an extreme emergency, would be Indignation, and this energy greatly exceeded Indignation's power, even when the Yggdrasill was at its prime. No, this was more of the power of Meteor Storm, but Arche, as irresponsible as she is, wouldn't cast that spell on just to kill a living oak! Was what ran through Klarth's head. Then, he noticed a small power. He had discounted it merely as a simple casting of Fireball, but, now that he inspected it closer, it resembled more of a summon. It couldn't have been… Could it? The activity generated by a summon is always very low, and to an inexperienced eye a summoning of Gremlin Rea could easily be mistaken for a simple Lightning spell. Still, each summon had its distinctive signature, and this one didn't resemble any one he'd…  
  
Klarth froze in his tracks.  
He had been running through his memory, recalling the energy signature of hundreds upon thousands of magical spirits and their summon energy, recalling the signature of monsters long-extinct in the real world, and his mind found upon one that meant only one thing.  
Arche was dead, if not the entire elf population.  
Klarth knew better than to think that this could be handled by him alone. He had been training in the use of the Eternal Sword, yes, but this was too great for him to handle. Not even Gremlin Rea could stand up to this power, it was so great. Klarth quested for the Eternal Sword, finally locating it among a pile of useless notebooks and porn magazines, the figurative and literal diamond in the rough. Klarth picked it up, feeling the power resonate into his body. Klarth held it up high, and yelled out.  
"Eternal Sword! Please take me to Cless Alvein and Mint Adnade!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
A flash of light erupted from Klarth's study.  
"Oh, great. He's gone and done one of his kooky experiments with combining elementals again, and pissed them off to the extent where they would attack him," thought Miranda. Holding the baby close to her, that Klarth had recently sired, she walked timidly forward, hoping that the elementals would not attack her in her frustration. She creaked the door open slowly. She stood in pure and utter shock.  
  
Klarth had disappeared, and the Eternal Sword was missing. She walked around, searching through the books, hoping against hope that Klarth was just playing a joke on her, and that he would pop out of a large pile of books and scare her out of her wits. Unnoticed in her search, a note was written:  
  
"Dear Miranda,  
  
I cannot write for long, for I fear that it may attack me, in its search for the Eternal Sword. All I can say is that you should leave immediately, for our son is special, not in the way that a parent thinks that his or her son is special, but in a way that could change our world dramatically. I have gone to retrieve Cless, Mint, and Chester, for they alone can help us. Hopefully, we will be back soon.  
  
-Klarth"  
  
(A/N: Good prologue, huh? Well, read and review, and flames are accepted, mainly because I need nest liner! =P)  



	3. A Not-So-Pleasant Chat

Chapter One  
  
Cless and Mint walked through the re-built Totus Village, now named Miguel Village by Cless. Cless had large plans for the village he helped to rebuild, like opening a tourism bureau, and putting up advertisements in the major towns for the swordsmanship school, who, coincidentally, was headed by Cless. Chester had been put in charge of maintaining the peace in Totus, and they had a small force of minutemen and archers to defend against attack. Yes, soon Miguel would be a center of commerce and tourism, thanks to the handy location near the Yggdrasill. Cless was interrupted from his thoughts when a beam of light shot down in front of him, forming a half-sphere, with electricity surging through it. Cless recognized this as time travel, but Dhaos was dead, period. They stared as a silhouette formed, eventually turning into…  
"Klarth!" Cless exclaimed. "What a pleasant surprise!"  
"To what do we owe the pleasure of this visit, Klarth? Certainly you wouldn't travel through time just to have a cup of tea with us," Mint inquired.  
"Spare the pleasantries. I have bad news."  
Cless' face instantly hardened. "If it's bad enough so that you travel through time to come here, I suspect that we should take this into my house."  
"Agreed."  
  
~*~*~  
  
In Cless' house…  
"Class dismissed, everybody. If you want to spar, don't. Now leave," Cless barked.  
When grumbling sprouted out among the students, Cless simply glared, giving a look that said "Do what I say or you'll wish you never knew me." This stare, which, among the students was popularly called the Cless Glare, was infamous in its notoriety and ferocity. The students filed out quickly.  
"Well, we're alone. What is this bad news, Klarth?" asked Mint.  
"I was studying the magical activity, 4202-4212, speculating about a burst of energy surrounding the Ymir Forest that happened in 4210. I then noticed a smaller energy that happened minutes beforehand, and at first dismissed it merely as a simple Fireball casting. However, the energy could only have been created by Arche, and this was no Indignation spell, which we both agreed would be the most powerful spell she would cast, unless in extreme emergencies. This was more of the level of Meteor Storm, and as irresponsible as she is, she wouldn't cast it just to clear a random bunch of monsters. Then, I noticed something different about that supposed Fireball casting that happened. It was extremely similar to said spell, but the damn thing was a wee bit too powerful, and the waveform just a hair away from a Fireball casting. Indeed, it had the particular initialization burst of energy that would happen when an Elemental was summoned. I ran through the many different summons, and concluded that, we are all in VERY deep shit."  
"Meaning?"  
"Arche is dead, if not the entire elven population."  
"Seriously, Klarth, what do you mean?"  
"Do you remember what Dhaos said before he transformed into Neo Dhaos?"  
"Yes. Something about Father Chaos and Mother Gaia, along with a wish for power. What does that have to do with Arche's death, though?"  
"To put it bluntly, Daddy's here."  
  
  
~*~*~  
Year: 4219  
  
Miranda walked out of the grocery store. It had been a week or so since Klarth had disappeared, and she was growing worried. She unconsciously held her baby close to her in her emotions of sadness and worried state. She approached her home, only to find the door ajar. Strange, that the door should be ajar. She was sure that she had locked it. She drew the small dagger Klarth had given to her a while ago, in case that she should be attacked and Klarth wasn't there to help her. She disliked violence, but understood that this wasn't a world where talking alone could get you out of an attempted mugging and rape. She approached the door slowly, kicked it open, and dashed inside the house, only to see a tall, blonde man in intricate bloodred and black robes smirking in her house. Wordlessly, he raised a hand, and prepared one of his attacks. Miranda opened her mouth for a scream, but it was drowned out by the man's words.  
  
"Chaos Laser!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
The town was sent into shock by a large beam and an explosion, followed by screaming. Soldiers ran to the house that was Klarth's library, only to have half of them disintegrated instantly in an earth-shattering explosion. Without any soldiers, or any means of defense, all too soon it was over. Euclid burst into flame, and when soldiers from Venetia arrived, they found a charred town, with everybody dead or missing. A few soldiers, rookies weak of stomach, heaved as the stench of death and decay hit their noses full blast. Even a few experienced soldiers, who had been there when Demitel destroyed Hamilton, wrinkled their faces over the skeletons and corpses, bloodied. Not even the children had been spared from the adults' fates. One corpse was a small kid, barely four, his chest neatly gutted and his head lying nearby, sightless, staring with the stare of death. The soldiers were not aware, though, that some of the ashes they stepped on were the ashes of people. People, like Miranda and her infant child. Above it all, five hundred feet, hovered Chaos. He grinned down at the scene below, satisfied with the destruction and confusion that he had reaped, and he couldn't contain a maniacal laugh, as he watched the soldiers pick their way through his fresh kills. Yes, he thought, I have done excellently, in creating the emotion that is my namesake. All too soon, I will kill those who killed my bloodline. Gaia may have been satisfied that our world had received a Mana Seed, but not I. I want to enact revenge.  
  
I want to kill Cless, Chester, Mint, and Klarth.  
  
With another maniacal laughter that the soldiers below couldn't hear, but could somewhat feel, sending a chill down their spine, Chaos flew off to his next target.  



	4. Enemies Revelealed

Chapter Two: Enemies Revealed  
  
"Apple gummies."  
"Check."  
"Rune bottles."  
"Check"  
Mint turned away from Klarth and Chester making preparations for the journey. She sighed and looked over to Cless, who was sleeping, trying to get even a minute bit of rest before they left for 4219 to destroy… whatever was trying to kill them, and had already succeeded with Arche. "Oh well. Might as well go over my supply pack…" though Mint as she walked over to her pack. "Let's see… Soup pot… ingredients for Oden, basic gummy supply, rune bottles, all of my equipment's here. Now let's check the equipment. My Blue Crystal rod, Star Cap, Star Cloak, Pretty Gloves, Shield Ring, my Mystic Rune, and my mother's Mana Earring. That's it for equipment. I guess I'm ready… except for the fact that I'm still tired." Mint yawned and decided that Cless was onto something, and walked over to her bed for the last nap she would take for a while, especially in that bed.  
  
~*~*~  
Dream sequence:  
  
Mint found herself in the Ymir Forest. Strange. I thought I was in Miguel, thought Mint. She didn't notice the black-and-blood-red-robed man walk towards the Elven Village. She was still pondering how she got here when she heard a loud explosion, and rushed towards the village, hoping against hope that it wasn't what had happened.  
  
~*~*~  
  
"Fireball!"  
"Eruption!"  
"Tidal Wave!"  
Arche stood in shock. Those were some of the best mages in the Elven Village, and they hadn't even dented this strange man. Well, next to her, of course. She stepped up to the plate, and prepared a spell.  
"INDIGNATION!"  
The man simply took the brunt and continued walking forward. Arche was in shock, but didn't show it, and quickly prepared to cast her best spell. The magical energy formed about her, and she slipped into the familiar trance of a spell. She looked up, the spell formed, and grinned evilly. "Let's see how you handle this!" thought Arche. What she spoke was a very different thing.  
"Meteor Storm!"  
The meteors crashed into the man, and for the first time, he looked pained. He brushed it quickly off, though, and turned…  
Towards Arche.  
Wordlessly, the man raised a hand, and gathered energy. He slammed it down to the ground, and yelled two words that stunned Arche.  
"Chaos Koreda!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
Mint ran into the Elven Village, and witnessed a scene of pure destruction. The buildings, what little there was left of them, were burning to the ground. Elves and humans alike littered the ground, all dead. In shock, she didn't even think of casting Raise Dead to help these people. It would not have mattered anyway, for this was merely a dream, and she was but a phantom. Mint walked through the village, and finally noticed two pink-haired people, one of which was her dear friend Arche. A tall man stood over them, with long blonde hair and intricate robes. Mint felt the energy radiating from him, and became scared. She knew instinctively that he was the one who had attacked the village and killed Arche. Now she would witness her own best friend's death in person. The man smirked with an evil glint in his eyes, and raised his boot. Mint turned away, but could not block the dull thud and the squish, as Arche's head was crushed like a watermelon under the sledgehammer.  
  
~*~*~  
  
"CHAOS!" screamed Mint, as she bolted up from her bed, waking Cless and startling Klarth and Chester, along with everybody who was nearby. Cless bolted up to find Mint in a cold sweat, her normally pretty face pale and ghost-like, her blonde hair in a shambles.  
"Mint! What's wrong?" asked a concerned Cless.  
"I know who killed Arche. Klarth is right. We are all in deep trouble."  
"Who? Who killed Arche?" asked Chester, concerned for his love.  
"Chaos. Dhaos' father. He killed Arche and the entire Elven Village. I also think that he's attacked Euclid, and killed everybody there. It makes sense, that he would attack the town we each lived in. He killed Miranda, Arche, her mother, and he'll kill EVERYBODY!"  
"Mint! Calm down! He won't kill anybody else. We'll make sure of that, Mint!"  
"You don't understand. His powers are far greater than that of Dhaos. Correction. Make that Neo Dhaos. To top it all off, he's not even at his full power. Without Arche, we have no chance to beat him… we can't… we can't…" Mint continued chanting "we can't…", deeply disturbed by the power of Chaos. Chester and Klarth left Mint alone, while Cless tried to calm her down.  
  
(A/N: So, how is it so far? As usual, flames are accepted, because I'm in SERIOUS need of nest liner.) 


	5. An Argument; A Solution

Chapter 3  
  
Cless sighed and looked towards Mint's bedroom. She was sleeping, having finally been calmed down enough to tell everybody the dream, and it deeply disturbed him. If Chaos could brush off Meteor Storm without a problem, then not even the Excalibur could even hope to hurt it. He turned back towards his friends and sighed again.  
"Alright. We know this much about Chaos. One. He's Dhaos' daddy. Two. He's powerful enough to shake off Meteor Storm as if it were a pinprick. Three. He is out to get us, for a reason that God only knows. Four. He's already killed Arche, and he plans to get us all. Now, here's the stumper. How do we kill this guy before he kills any more of us, or innocents?"  
"I don't know how we can do it, Cless. This guy makes Dhaos look like a Bugbear next to a Roam Eye. It's going to be very difficult, if not impossible, to kill him without him killing all of us," Klarth replied slowly.  
"We could ambush him and kill him without him knowing it."  
"Won't work. One. He's too damn powerful. Two. I have a hunch he's locked on to our powers, and he should be able to sense us coming, if what Mint said is correct."  
"We could set a trap and kill him that way."  
"Won't work. Again, he's too damn powerful for traps to work. This isn't a boar we're hunting. This is big game, and the game we're after is after us. The game we're after is a figurative tiger, smart, powerful, and extremely deadly. Besides, any trap we can set for him will either be too weak to kill or trap him, or he'll be able to negate the effects of it."  
"Maybe we could summon Chameleon."  
This time, Klarth spoke up.  
"Chameleon almost never works. In the rare case that he does work, he only kills enemies that we could kill ourselves, and there's no way we can kill Chaos without either a major boost in power or a major decrease in Chaos' power. To put it in an analogy, we need to balance the scales, or better yet, tip them in our favor, because, right now, the scales are off the scale in favor of Chaos."  
"We could use the Eternal Sword to travel to his planet and convince him to stop."  
"No. The Eternal Sword only deals with time travel, and planetary travel is way out of its power."  
"The Excalibur could help!"  
"The Excalibur's power signature differs too greatly from the Eternal Sword's for it to be able to help."  
"Maybe…"  
"Chester, look. You're very smart, but this Chaos is just way out of our league in terms of pure, raw power. We may be more versatile, but he can overcome that pretty easily with brute force. Unless we can hurt him enough to balance us, or for us to greatly increase our power, he's got us beat, period."  
"Alright then. We could always train until we're as powerful as he is."  
"Won't work. In order for us to do that, we would have to train 24/7 for about two centuries, and we don't live long enough for that. Not to mention the fact that Chaos would probably find us long before we could finish training."  
"Damn! He's got us beat! We just can't kill him with the resources we have!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
While the men were arguing downstairs, the tension building to a breaking point, Mint was sleeping, and had another dream…  
  
~*~*~  
  
For a moment, Mint thought that her eyes had forgotten to open themselves. Everywhere she moved her head, she could see nothing but blackness. She tried to open her eyes, and found that her eyes were open, but she couldn't see. She wasn't prepared for the voice, however.  
  
"Welcome to the Yggdrasill, Mint."  
  
Mint jumped up, startled, then recognized the voice.  
  
"Martel?" Mint whispered.  
  
"Yes. It is I. I know what your problems are. You are worried about Arche's death in 4210. You are also worried about your friends, and there's a little part in you worrying about how you can defeat Chaos. Unfortunately, you yourself cannot. That job will be for Cless. However, you will help him, in healing and in being the messenger."  
  
"What is the message for me?"  
  
"Combine the Excalibur and the Eternal Sword…"  
  
"Martel! Wait! MARTEL!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
Mint's eyes shot open, and she got out of bed.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Klarth was trying to keep the peace between Klarth and Chester, who looked like they were about to come to fists when Mint walked downstairs, and seated herself at the table.  
  
"Mint! You should be resting," Cless moved to pick her up, but at a glare from Mint, Cless sat back down and Klarth and Chester forgot about their fights and looked at Mint.  
  
"I know how to defeat Chaos," Mint spoke. Cless tried to interrupt, but again was met with another glare and a threatening gesture with her rod. "We need to combine the Eternal Sword and the Excalibur. The bearer will have the power to defeat Chaos. Unfortunately, only Cless is capable of holding the sword."  
That being said, Mint looked over to Klarth, and he nodded. Klarth began to leaf through the pages of his notebook, looking for the right incantation to summon Origin. A light flared in the middle of the table, and the form of Origin appeared.  
  
"Klarth. What is your desire?"  
  
"We want you to combine the Eternal Sword and the Excalibur so that we could defeat the father of Dhaos, Chaos," Klarth replied.  
  
"I have not the power to do it here. Only at the Heimdall can I combine weapons."  



	6. Origin's DEAD?

Chapter Four  
  
"What do you mean, Origin?" Klarth asked, a look of pure shock etched on his face.  
"What I mean is, that only a place that radiates with magical power can give me the strength I need to combine weapons, especially when those weapons are as powerful as the ones you are asking me to combine."  
"Why can't we go to the Yggdrasill?" Chester asked. "That tree IS the center for magic."  
"No. The energy is too different for me to tap effectively."  
"So what you're saying is that the Heimdall has what you want, even though the Yggdrasill has more power?" Klarth asked skeptically.  
"Yes."  
"WHY?"  
"The Heimdall is the center for summoning energy. The Yggdrasill deals with straight magic."  
"What? If that is true, why would the elementals disappear if the Yggdrasill died? You're providing a contradictory answer, Origin."  
"The Yggdrasill is the lifeblood of the Elementals. The Heimdall, however, gives the power to summon."  
"That isn't true, isn't it, Origin? Or, should I say, minion of Chaos?" Mint spoke up. Origin glared at her, and sneered.  
"What would you know, girl?"  
"You keep pushing us to the Heimdall, which is located in the Treant Forest, which is conveniently occupied by Chaos, even though the Yggdrasill provides the energy you need. I've done a little researching on the Yggdrasill, through Martel. It turns out that the Yggdrasill deals with all kinds of magic, be it Mana or Summoning or straight magic. When the Unicorn died, Mana was weakened tremendously, until the Yggdrasill took over its job, which allowed me to heal it in 4202. The Heimdall, also, is very interesting, because it turns out that it is merely part of the Yggdrasill's roots, and that over time, the ground around it eroded down to reveal it. The ancients then carved it into what today is the Heimdall."  
Origin cackled and with a flash, he transformed into a boggart. "You may have figured me out, but we have your precious Origin! Come get him, if you can!" Cackling evilly, the boggart-Origin disappeared.  
  
~*~*~  
  
"So now what do we do? Origin's been captured, and, as far as I know, only he can combine weapons," Cless asked.  
"We should rescue him as soon as possible!" Chester spoke up.  
"No. It's a trap," Klarth said, his head bowed.  
"We should still rescue him, even if it's a trap!" Chester replied, becoming angry at Klarth.  
"It will come to nothing. Origin is dead."  
"What do you mean by that? That boggart-Origin would not have said that they had Origin if he was dead!" Chester shouted.  
"The only thing that can stop an elemental, especially one who's as powerful as Origin, is death itself. If Origin were alive, he could have come here, but he is dead, which means that the boggart is the new Origin. Elementals are not the personifications that we see, but offices. The office of Undine can as easily be taken by a fish as by the human we know as Undine. It's the same with Salamando, Gnome, Maxwell, Luna, Aska, Shade, all of the Elementals that we physically see is just the holder of the current office. The exceptions to the rule are the ones that are not in a house, namely, Chameleon and Gremlin Rea. Doubtless, Chaos plans to fill the Elementals' offices with his minions, effectively cutting off the little magical attacking power that we have. Unless we can stop it, or fill the offices with people or things that are either neutral or for us, then Chaos has won the battle. He may be an insane psychopath, but he's the smart kind of insane, which means that we need to be extra careful, because this guy is powerful, and brains mixed with brawn is a very dangerous combination." Klarth breathed deeply as he finished his speech.  
"So, to summarize it, he plans to destroy our attacking power." Cless said thoughtfully.  
"Yes. The only ones he doesn't know about are Gremlin Rea, Volt, and Chameleon. The rest-that is to say, the Elementals with offices-are the ones he knows about and will destroy."  
"So, those three we are safe to cast." Chester spoke up.  
"NO. Once I summon one of those three, he will know of them and quickly deal with them." Klarth replied heatedly.  
"So what the hell do we do?"  
"We do what we do best. We kick ass and save the world."  
"Other than that, Cless." Mint sighed.  
"We get new elementals to fill the occupations of old ones. Hopefully, we try to get people who know of how to use power." Klarth replied  
"So who do we choose?"  
"Runeglom, for one. He's an elf, and he should know how to use his power." Chester suggested.  
"Who else?"  
"Maybe we could pull back in time and rescue my father and mother," Cless sighed as he lost himself in memories of his father and mother before the Black Knights that were supposed to have been created to protect the people had attacked Totus.  
"We could do that… but how do we keep history from changing? After all, if you don't see your parents dying, you won't go to Euclid and meet Mint. In effect, we would never meet, and Dhaos would still live," Klarth asked.  
"We could go to Thor and see if Oz can't make some metal humans." Cless answered enigmatically.  
"Metal humans? What in the name of the Unicorn are you talking about, Cless?" Mint asked skeptically.  
"We'll see when we get there. But, first, we must decide who else we will drag into a world of power and danger," Cless answered mysteriously.  
"Well, I guess we'll wait and see. Now, back to business. Whom do we choose? Who is crazy and/or dumb enough to accept that?"  
"Maybe a few of the elves…" Chester said.  
"They're all dead, remember? Chaos killed them all." Mint sobbed.  
"Well, I have a million people to suggest, and I'm itching to name 'em all…"  
  
~*~*~  
  
Ketone stealthily crawled through the passageway, his feet making no noise and his body masked by darkness and his eyes closed, using his power to scout out ahead. 'A few traps, but nothing too bad. My, my, Cless, you really have gotten sloppy,' Ketone thought.  
  
~*~*~  
  
They had chosen a person for all of the offices except for Origin, when Cless froze, his back facing the wall. 'A few traps, but nothing too bad, My, my, Cless, you really have gotten sloppy,' ran through his mind. Cless smirked and turned towards the table. "It looks like we have ourselves a new Origin."  



	7. A Trap and a Flashback

Chapter Five  
  
Ketone nosed open the door, hoping to get even the smallest bit of information that he could use. He was unprepared, however, for the trap that had been sprung on Cless in the Ninja Village: the weighted wall slid down, causing the loose floorboard that Ketone was standing on to act as a lever, launching Ketone out into the pond that Cless had installed. "KAWAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIII!"  
  
~*~*~  
  
"Get ready, everybody! Here he comes...!" Cless warned the others.  
"KAWAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIII!" yelled Ketone, falling into the pool with a loud splash. Ketone found himself being pulled out of the water by a pair of calloused hands, which meant...  
"Oh, shi... err... shoot..." Ketone moaned, replacing the curse word with its less colorful version when he noticed the Cless Glare upon his persona. While he was bemoaning himself about being caught eavesdropping by Cless, he couldn't help but ask a question.  
"How could you have hidden a simple trap like that so well?" Ketone asked Cless.  
"Um... well... I can't really explain this... uh... Klarth?" Cless stuttered, sweatdropping.  
"Hmph. Always passing on the questions to me, Cless. Anyway," the stranger Ketone assumed who was Klarth spoke. "It's actually a by-product of a summon of everyone's favorite dark-typed elemental, Shade." Klarth continued matter-of-factly.  
"Shade? Who's he? Also, why did you call him an elemental?"  
"Maybe I should explain. First, I think that we should get you inside and in some dry clothes."  
"Why the sudden change, Cless? You used to always make us walk around wet whenever we fell into the pond." Ketone inquired, suspicious.  
"Well, I only did that to you on your first day in my school, and after that, you never fell into the pond again," Cless chuckled, remembering Ketone's first day.  
  
~*~*~  
Flashback...  
  
A small boy dressed in black walked up to a younger Cless.  
"Are you the one they call Cless Alvein?" the boy asked Cless.  
"Yes I am. Why do you ask?" Cless replied.  
"I am the great Ketone, and I challenge you to a duel for the right to enter your school." the then-cocky Ketone challenged.  
"You don't have to fight me for the right to enter my school, but if you insist..."  
  
Thirty minutes later, Ketone had drawn his katana and Cless was weilding a wooden training sword.  
"I will not hold back on you, Cless. Prepare to lose," Ketone called out to Cless.  
"I will. I will hold back on you, merely for the fact that if I used my better skills I could easily kill you," Cless responded.  
Ketone scowled and charged at him, his katana ready to impale Cless. Just as the sword was ready to bite into and through Cless' body, Cless parried and went for a slash to the back. Ketone dodged to the left and twirled around, slashing at Cless. Cless easily dodged each blow, and jumped into the air, kicking twice at Ketone, scoring each time, and finally hitting Ketone upside the head with the wooden training sword. Ketone was sent flying and landed ten feet away. before he could raise himself, Cless was at his side, the point of the wooden sword at his neck, his baby-blue eyes staring down at him with a look that screamed hatred, his face hardened by a frown. Ketone was beginning to fear for his life, when Cless' features softened, and he held out his hand. Ketone accepted it, and found himself on the ground, his back hit by the wooden sword. "Rule number one. Never, and I mean never, underestimate your opponent. Rule number two. Never accept a helping hand from your opponent unless his or her sword is put away. Until you learn these rules, along with several others, you will be in my school, Ketone." With that, he threw away his sword and helped Ketone up. 


	8. Split Ends

Chapter Six  
  
"Cless? Hello. Are you in there?" Ketone said, waving his hand in front of Cless' face.  
"Ketone, I wouldn't do that if I were you..." Mint warned Ketone.  
"Why don't you just shut your mouth, baka onna," Ketone replied, and was about to continue when he was ont he ground, his arm twisted painfully behind his back, Cless glaring down at him. "Two more rules I've recently added. One. Do not wave your hand in front of my face if you value your bodily health. Two. Do not call ANYONE, especially Mint, a foolish woman in my presence, unless you have a death wish," Cless said icily, then let go of Ketone's arm none too gently, causing Ketone to yelp out in pain.  
"Youch! Owww..." Ketone moaned.  
"Those rules are the rules of etiquette. Here are the rules of swordsmanship. Do not let the enemy see you sweat or hear you cry out in pain," Cless replied.  
"Cless, we have to talk for a few moments," Chester said, pulling Cless away from the pond. When they were out of earshot, Chester threw Cless up against the wall. "What the HELL do you think you are doing to Ketone? You're making him hate you, and even you have to admit he could very well be our final hope for defeating Chaos, you narrow-minded idiot!" Chester exploded.  
"I'm trying to teach him how to fight, Chester!" Cless responded icily.  
"Is that what you call teaching? Beating the living hell out of him for calling Mint a foolish woman and waving his hand in your face? Nearly breaking his arm? I also saw your first 'duel' with Ketone. You gave him the frikkin' Dual Kick! That move's strong enough to kill a Bugbear, much less a small child!" Chester yelled at Cless.  
"Hey, at least I didn't use my better moves. I didn't use Teleport, or Pheonix, or Fury Slash, or Psion Bolt, or any of those moves!" Cless defended.  
"And then, after you had clearly won, you knocked the kid down again! Miguel never taught you like that! You're also gentler on the other students! Why are you so rough on Ketone?" Chester attacked.  
"He's a tough guy. He can take being roughed up a little." Cless responded.  
"That's total bullshit, Cless! What you are doing is NOT 'roughing him up', it's 'beating him into submission'! What is so different about him that you have to kick his ass every time he cusses?" Chester inquired, the anger in his voice rising to a breaking point.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Back at the pool...  
  
Ketone smirked and slipped away towards where Cless and Chester were about ready to come to blows, leaving Mint and Klarth to wonder where he was. He jumped on the roof and arrived within earshot as Cless made his reply...  
  
~*~*~  
  
"Why do I kick his ass for cussing? He's supposed to be the new Origin, dammit! He's going to be thrust into a world of danger and immense power, and I want to be damn sure he can handle it! If he's just an ordinary human from the Ninja Village, then he's going to just get his ass kicked worse by Chaos! If it turns out that he's unable to handle the job, then there will be no second chances at finding a new Origin, because Chaos will be on to us and destroy every single town in every single timeline, and then we'll be crippled, and he'll attack us and we'll be dead! He is going to have a responsibility that no child should have, and he is not going to like it!" Cless breathed deeply as he finished his speech.  
"That's not all of it, is it, Cless? What else sets him that far apart? What could make you do this sort of..." Chester broke off as he realized the reason Cless was so rough on Ketone.  
"You see yourself in him, is that it, Cless? You see yourself and you are ashamed that you were once like him, cocky, eager to learn, and overconfident in his abilities. That's the reason you're acting that way towards him, right, Cless?" Chester asked.  
Cless hung his head, speaking in a very low tone. "Yes, that is why, Chester. However, he will have power equal to or greater than my own, and instead of recieving it gradually, like I did, he will be given power in one huge burst, and I'm afraid that he will either go mad with power and become like Chaos, kill us and try to kill Chaos on his own, or, even worse, become indifferent to the world and its going-ons, and refuse to help us period. That's why I'm being so difficult on him. I want to be SURE that there's not a smidgen of cockiness or overconfidence in his body, or he could very well cost us the world." Cless explained.  
"You know, Cless, I wouldn't have turned on you, especially after you did something like that in our first duel," Ketone said quietly, jumping down from his place on the roof where he had heard almost all of the argument.  
Cless started and turned towards Ketone. "Yes, I heard. I heard it all except for the very beginning," Ketone answered Cless' unspoken question.  
"Well, if that's true, then we might as well tell you everything. Klarth and Mint should be able to fill in the holes, and we'll see if we can't find you some decent equipment tomorrow," Cless sighed, and led him back to the pond where Mint and Klarth were waiting. 


	9. Shopping for Weapons

Chapter Seven  
  
"Ugh... This is most possibly the most boring thing I've ever done in my frikkin' LIFE!" Ketone moaned as Cless dragged him through the fourteenth weapon store in one day.  
"Oh, be quiet. We're almost done, anyway. Now, let's see... I think I can give you... Ah, here it is!" Cless picked up a a huge double-handed katana, his eyes starry as he gazed upon what he thought of as a vision of pure holiness. Ketone, however, thought of it more as...   
"You're not serious! I won't be able to LIFT the friggin' thing, much less SWING it!" Ketone exclaimed, his eyes nearly as large as his body, his jaw only one inch off the ground.  
"Oh, don't be serious. This is actually a copy of the Muramasa, which I weilded one time, created by a dwarf I stumbled upon while I was scouting for areas to expand Miguel Town. He enchanted this with evil-destroying properties, and it is extermely light and easy to weild effectively. Here, try it out," Cless explained, flipping it and catching the blade deftly and holding the hilt out to Ketone. Ketone reluctantly grasped the hilt, and gasped in suprise when Cless abruptly let go, leaving Ketone holding it effortlessly. Cless smiled when he saw Ketone's look of suprise transorm to a look of appreciation, and paid the owner of the shop, who, coincidentally, was the dwarf that Cless had stumbled upon that time long ago.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Year: 4219  
  
Soldiers of Venetia picked through the ruins of Euclid, searching for survivors when they knew their search was in vain. A soldier searched through the remains of Klarth's library, and froze when he heard a wail from a small baby. He began his search with renewed vigor, and smiled when he came across the source of the wail. He picked up the baby, and his smile turned to a frown when he examined him for any damage. Amazingly, he child was unscathed, although his clothes were totally destroyed. His puzzlement showing on his face, the soldier named Thomas Alvein carried the nude baby to the captain of the expidition. 


	10. The Battle for the Baby

Chapter Eight, Part One  
A Battle for a Baby  
  
(Author's Note: This chapter, I'm doing something different.  
This chapter will be split into two parts. Cless and the others are going to be left out of this chapter completely, and part one is going to focus mainly on the ancestor of Cless and his fight for custody of the late Miranda's baby. Part two will mainly focus on Chaos and it will be like the prelude to the story.)  
  
The lawyer sighed as he gazed towards the soldier who was carrying a baby.  
  
"Mr... Thomas Alvein, is it?" the lawyer paused, continuing when he saw Thomas nod. "Mr. Alvein, although the baby is in suprisingly good health, Venetia's normal practice in this case is to send the baby to an orphanage in Alvanista or Mid galds. The fact of the matter is that no matter how much you want to be declared the legal guardian of this child, you have a minimal chance of being rewarded custody. Also, considering your profession and your salary, these reduce an already small chance to infitesimal bounds. Plus, I very much doubt if the Captain of the Guards wants his best soldier to be distracted by a child." The lawyer gazed at the soldier.  
  
"Screw my job. I'll open a swordsmanship school. If the city doesn't want me to, I'll pack my bags and leave for Alvanista or another town." Thomas replied vehemently.  
  
"Mr. Alvein! Such practice is considered kidnapping! If you try that, you'll quickly become a wanted criminal!" The lawyer exclaimed, shocked.  
  
"I guess that means that I have to win this battle, doesn't it?" Thomas replied with a smirk, then looked down at the baby, and cuddled him closer to his armor-covered body.  
  
The lawyer rolled his eyes, then grunted in submission. "Fine. I'll do my best to help you."  
  
~*~*~  
  
Several days later, after a grueling legal battle...  
  
Thomas walked out of the courthouse, his personal hell for too long, with a spring in his step, having won custody of the child. He looked down at the smiling baby, and grinned. "You know, I can't call you Baby forever," Thomas remarked to the child, receiving a giggle in response. "I'll have to think of a name somehow... Maybe you'd like Jeffery?" Seeing the child's eyes starting to tear up, he hastily continued. "Okay, not Jeffery then. Maybe Isaac? Nah... you don't like that name. Gohan, maybe?" Thomas suffered a massive blow to the eardrums from that suggestion, as the child cried out at levels thought impossible. "Okay, okay! I get the point! Maybe you would like Thomas Jr. On second thought, maybe not... Aw, I'll just use my father's middle name. How would you like to be called Ketone?" The baby's face lit up, giggling all the way, whose name had been decided as Ketone. 


	11. Chaos Strikes Again

(Author's Note: Sorry I took so long to update it! I just got writer's block, and then school interfered, and I lost inspiration! I'll try to write more often! Also, I'm going to conclude this fiction in a little while. I'll crank out a few more chapters and then give the ending out.)  
Chaos scanned the infinite boundaries that was the River of Time, noting the minor deaths. He found what he searched for, and followed the path, recieving a feeling of slight pleasure, as he traveled along the path that he traveled. He smiled down, seeing memories of happier times, of his wedding to his first wife, of birthing Dhaos, and his smile turned to a frown as his path in time started to rise. His journey was almost over, and he was nearing the present. He sighed and continued along, ignoring the path, and traveling roughly through it into his future. Sudden blackness enveloped him, signifying that this path was ending. Chaos was deeply confused. How could he die against this population of mundane creatures, when every member of the race combined had power slightly less than that of his thumb? He sunk back and in his confusion returned to Klarth's time. He sighed, knowing that even he had limits, and traveling the River of Time twice in one day surpassed those limits. Oh well... he thought. Can't allow a prime oppurtunity for more fun pass like this. He turned and started towards Venezzia.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Thomas walked out of Venezzia to the cries of "Coward!" from his fellow soldiers towards Beladum Village. His hopes and thoughts of opening a swordsmanship school and how he could run ut were disrupted when Ketone started to cry and to wiggle.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Ketone's infant mind sensed a blackness approaching above him, a blackness that scared the child to his miniscule bones. He started to cry out, hoping to drive off the blackness with sonic waves.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Chaos noticed a small power directly below him. He noticed Thomas carrying the baby, and smirked as he flew down.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Thomas' mind was just returning to thoguhts of his school when a shadow passed above him. He dismissed it as a bird, and tried to scare it off in an irritated manner, his head still bowed, deep in thought. A moment laster, he had no head to bow.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Ketone's small body was instantly covered with the blood of his recent father. His fear at the blackness was quickly replaced by a new emotion he had never experienced before. The emotion was a deep need for revenge against the blackness, mixed with sorrow for the loss of his father and a realization of abilities he never knew existed. In an instant, his minute body became filled with power, awareness, and knowledge. And the child used his power in the one way he knew how. His fear overwhlemed him and his need for flight grew greatly. As a result, his reaction grew from minor wigglings in his former father's arms to the use of the most advanced technique, one used only by supercomputers and powerful magicians. He opened a portal into the River of Time, and flung his small body inside.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Chaos looked at the ever-so-recognizable portal into the River of Time, closing the moment the infant flung itself in, despite not being older than ten months. Confusion flooded his mind, and he reveled in it, and set it aside for a later date. Right now, he thought, I have more important matters...  
  
~*~*~  
  
Eight years before a teenager named Cless appeared, a portal appeared in the village of the Ninja, and a small infant flew out of it as if he had been running a great distance. The head of the Ninja parted the crowd that gathered and picked up the infant, taking him to the baths to clean his body of dirt and wounds sustained from the fall. As he soaked the child, he recieved a sudden understanding, and knew of his name, though he had no source to base the knowledge on. The child's name was Ketone.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Cless' body was racked with a sudden pain as he felt his ancestry being torn apart, ancestor by ancestor. Finally, the pain reached a peak point as the tearing reached his body. In an instant, to Mint, Klarth, and Ketone's horror, he screamed at the top of his lungs and vanished. An instant later, Ketone shuddered in a mixture of pleasure and horror as memories of what happened flooded his mind, and the tenchiques he learned so long ago returned to his brain. 


	12. The New Player

Ketone sat in his room, a simple room with just a bed and dresser. The candles of the room were unlit, and the windows were closed and the curtains were drawn. The bed of the lightless room was occupied by the sweating form of Ketone, who had sat in that room in the same pose for hours upon hours, studying the sudden burst of power which flowed through his veins, as well as the sudden memories. Ketone opened his eyes, and sighed once more. He'd been doing that a lot recently, as answers as to how these memories, and that unquestionable, imposing power had formed. He remembered little, only the sobering feel of blood and other parts on his minute body and stumbling towards a portal. But what disturbed him more was a memory of a sixth sense that he hadn't had before, and recently had awakened. As he examined mentally the sixth sense, he could feel a great power of darkness corrupting something very close. He looked down at his body, and focused again. His range with the sixth sense was still as yet limited, but he could still recognize the faint trace. The power suffused with purity which undoubtably belonged to Mint. The interesting mix of powers, and traces of powers recently removed, which he recognized as Klarth. And finally, the dark, brooding power belonging to the swordsman who had replaced Cless. And then, a power which dwarfed them all closed rapidly, this one tinged green with the power of Nature. Martel, Ketone identified.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Martel looked through the River of Space, the river parallel, perpendicular, and inextricably weaved with the River of Time. She quickly found the purity of Mint, and then the dark, brooding power, and sighed, wishing that Cless was there instead of this strange swordsman, this Ninten. She looked up a few inches, then headed straight towards one other power, this one off-white with corrupted purity.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Mint and Klarth looked towards the room which Ketone had shut himself in, and shook their heads as they recalled the events which had led to Ketone's isolation. First, Ketone had asked where Cless had gone to. When Mint and Klarth, not knowing who this "Cless" was, had asked who he was, Ketone looked shocked, and then angry, and was about ready to attack them. Then, Ninten came home, and tried to set Ketone to his usual chores. When Ketone refused, Ninten had tried to keep his cool, but when Ketone had spouted several words to the Head of the School of the Church which were literally BANNED, Ninten had lost it and screamed at Ketone. One thing led to another, and before you knew it, Ketone was attempting not to fight him and stalked off into his room. Ninten, then, under the impression that Ketone was insulting him, rushed up to the door and had attempted to kick it open and drag him into the church in order for him to repent for his "sins," but Ketone had quickly learned how to erect a shield and Ninten had simply resigned himself to brooding in his study. 


End file.
